Decisions
by Thiswouldbeakick
Summary: 'His breath hitched in his chest and he let out a muffled scream when the bullet hit him in the stomach'. What if Alma Dray did shoot Danny when she had the chance? Set during the first movie, AU and filling in missing scenes. Multi-chaptered. Contains OC in later chapters. Please R and R.
1. Chapter 1

He stood on top of a little wall, hands raised in surrender as he stared at the gun aimed at him. However, the taunting look Daniel Atlas gave Interpol-agent Alma Dray told that he was only messing with her. She would never pull the trigger on an unarmed man appearing to surrender himself.

Unfortunately for Danny, Alma interpreted the situation quite differently. All she could see was one of the men the FBI had been chasing for days. One of the men who had made them all look like idiots. Seeing him look at her like she was just the next cop he would be playing a trick on, she made her decision in a split-second.

The weapon recoiled heavily in Alma's hands as she sent a bullet in Daniel Atlas' direction.

Danny's expression changed to one of shock as he realized he had been wrong. Alma _was_ going to shoot him.  
His breath hitched in his chest and he let out a muffled scream when the bullet hit him in the stomach.  
For a moment Danny was able to keep his balance on top of the little brick wall, but then started to fall backwards. With a dull thud he landed on his back on the concrete on the other side of the wall, scaring some people standing there.

Danny groaned in pain and stared up at the star-strewn sky for about half a second. Warm blood was already staining his pristine white shirt and spilling onto the street beneath him. He could hear FBI-agents yelling on the other side of the wall and he knew that it would not be long before they would climb over. He needed to get away, he needed to hide and he needed to have his wound taken care of.

The Four Horsemen had agreed to split up after their performance and lay low for several hours. Danny would be meeting Merritt in an apartment a few blocks away, and Henley and Jack would be meeting up in an apartment elsewhere in the city.

Danny quickly scrambled to his feet, suppressing a scream in pain and clutching his stomach tightly. He broke into a run as fast as his wound allowed him to go and disappeared into the crowd of people celebrating Mardi Grass.  
The pain of the bullet-wound was absolutely searing and threatened to overwhelm him. It wasn't long before he was panting and black spots began blurring his vision, but still he ran on.  
His progress was slow because of the huge number of people out on the streets. Quite often someone bumped into him, sending fresh waves of pain through his body and making him gasp for breath.

Danny finally rounded the last corner and ran onto the street where the apartment was. He could already see the door to the building!  
His bloodstained hands searched for the keys in the pockets of his trousers. It gave him quite some trouble, since his hands were shaking so badly now from pain and shock.

Danny stumbled over the threshold and into the hallway of the apartment building. As soon as the door fell in the lock behind him, he sank to the ground. He half expected to pass out right there and then, for the pain had reached an all-time high and the panting breaths he was taking did not quite seem to reach his lungs.  
Danny looked to his right, to the wooden staircase, with a heavy-hearted feeling. He still had two flights of stairs to climb before he would actually reach their apartment, where he would be out of danger of being seen.

With a grunt and several whimpers in pain, Danny pulled himself to his feet again. For a moment he stood at the bottom of the stairs, mustering up the strength like he was preparing to climb Everest, but finally set foot on the first step.

The stairs took Danny a long while. He had to stop several times to catch his breath or when the pain became too much. How he hoped he would not run into one of the other tenants!

When Danny finally swung the door of the apartment open and dragged himself inside, he could already hear Merritt rummaging around somewhere.  
"Well, finally, you're here!" Merritt called from the kitchen, "you should really work on your stamina, man. I have already been here for about twenty minutes". Merritt was patiently waiting for Danny to walk into the kitchen and give him some witty reply. Instead he heard a stumble and a loud thud, like something had fallen to the ground.  
"Danny?" Merritt called a little hesitantly, walking out of the kitchen and into the hallway.  
"Danny!" he now yelled as he saw his fellow Horseman.

Danny's strength had finally given out on him and he had fallen to the ground right behind the door. He was lying on his side, facing the door. Merritt ran through the hallway and fell to his knees next to Danny. He grabbed the magician's shoulder and carefully rolled him onto his back. It scared him how limp Danny's body felt and the whimper the young man gave when he was being moved did not exactly easy Merritt's mind either.

It took Merritt only a second to notice the blood and the gunshot-wound.  
"Oh my God, Danny, what happened?!" Merritt asked shocked. Danny slowly opened his eyes and it took him a few seconds before he answered.  
"Well, obviously… I got shot" Danny's voice sounded broken and slurred. Not in any way resembling the waterfall of rapid speech he usually was.  
"I can see that smart-ass" Merritt retorted, "but _what_ happened?"  
"That lady from Interpol, she shot me" Danny answered, a hint of fear in his voice.

Merritt dropped any further questions, seeing that talking cost a lot of Danny's strength and pained him. Instead he pulled aside Danny's jacket to have a closer look at the wound. It looked nasty, with quite a loss of blood. Merritt felt Danny's back for an exit-wound, but could not locate one, meaning the shot had not been a through-and-through.  
"You need to get this attended to" Merritt said seriously now.  
"Just leave it" Danny muttered breathlessly, "going to a hospital would be like turning myself in". "Surely" Merritt said, "but if you do nothing I don't think you'll enjoy life much longer".  
"Then so be it" Danny whispered.

Merritt felt like he had been punched in the stomach by those words. He had never been particularly close to Danny, but seeing the young man make the decision to just die on the floor of some shitty apartment, was not something he would allow.  
"I'm getting you help" Merritt said determinedly and immediately stood up.  
"So you actually don't mind being the cause of me going to prison for the rest of my life?!"Danny sounded hurt and disappointed and his eyes reflected pain, both physically and mentally. Merritt did not reply and merely gave him a stern look, before walking over to the phone in the living room.  
Danny wanted to stop him, protest, scream, punch Merritt… But he simply did not have the strength for it. So he just lay still and let it all happen, quietly accepting his faith.

Merritt picked up the phone, a land-line to which he hoped the FBI had not seen reason to tap into. He quickly dialled a number and listened as the phone tried to make connection.

It rang four times, five times, six times...

Merritt was about to accept defeat and hang up the phone, when a voice on the other side of the line sounded.  
"Hello?"  
Merritt sighed a huge sigh of relief. "Hello sweetie" he said, "I am in a bit of trouble..." 

* * *

**Thanks for reading. The next chapter will be up as soon as possible.  
** **All reviews, favs and follows are highly appreciated! ;-)  
**


	2. Chapter 2

Merritt silently hung up the phone. He looked down into the hallway and found Danny staring back at him. A look of pure hatred was etched on the young man's face.

"They'll be here as soon as possible" Merritt said softly.  
"You should not have done it" Danny answered coldly as he turned his head away, "now, please, let me be".  
"Come on, man, at least let me get you off the floor" Merritt said.  
"I will break your legs if you come any closer" Danny spoke shakily, but the menace still dripped from his words. Merritt stared sadly at Danny for a few more seconds, before granting his fellow Horseman's wish and retreated back into the living room. He felt very bad about just leaving Danny on the floor in the hallway, but he knew it would only make things worse if he came in the vicinity of the young man now.  
In his mind, Merritt kept going over the decision of calling help over and over again, but every time he came to the same conclusion: it had been the right thing to do. No matter how much Danny would hate him for it, he could not sit around and watch him die.

* * *

Danny remained where he had fallen. He was drifting in and out of consciousness by now and did not even attempt to move to a more comfortable position or location. In the short periods of time he was awake, he thought about what the future would bring for him. As soon as the paramedics would walk through that door and they had any sense of today's news, they would recognize him and immediately inform the FBI. He would be arrested, trialled and locked up for the rest of his life.

With these grim thoughts, a fresh wave of blinding pain shot through his body. His breathing elevated even further and his hands shook in pain. Danny closed his eyes in a desperate attempt to make his misery vanish. Slowly, he felt himself sink away, slipping once again into the peaceful void of unconsciousness.

* * *

Danny came to with a shock.

At first he did not know why panic was coursing through his body from the moment he was awake again, but realisation dawned on him as he saw Merritt appear in the hallway and walk in his direction. They were here….

"Don't bite, pitbull" Merritt said, hands raised in surrender, "I am just going to open the door".Danny did not say anything and avoided to look at Merritt. He turned his head away from the door. He did not need to see the people that were going to turn him in.

"Hello, sweetheart" Merritt greeted the person that had knocked on the door.  
Danny slowly turned his head now to see who was there. Merritt's greeting to this person was strange, to say the least, so his interest was peeked slightly.

And what Danny saw was not at all what he had been expecting….

Merritt was closing the door behind a young woman who was carrying a large gym-bag. Danny guessed she was a few years younger than himself, somewhere in her mid- or late-twenties. She had ash-blonde hair and light eyes. She was an average-looking young woman, but something in her appearance and the way she held herself was very familiar, although Danny could not determine what it was.

Danny knew that paramedics always came with at least two doctors. So, she could not be a paramedic. Who was she?

As soon as the woman saw Danny lying on the floor, she was by his side in a flash. She quickly checked his pulse and breathing, had a closer look at his wound and asked him a few simple questions.  
Danny allowed it all, but finally asked the question that had been bugging him.  
"Wh… who are you?" he slurred.  
"Oh, jeez! Sorry!" she exclaimed, "my name is Sarah".  
"Sarah is an ER-surgeon" Merritt interrupted her, "and… she's my daughter".

Even though Danny was fighting to stay conscious, he did manage to conjure a look of utter surprise on his face. He was fairly certain that none of the Horsemen, including himself, had any idea that Merritt had a daughter.  
"And… and you're a doctor?" Danny stammered weakly.  
"Yes" Sarah answered, "and, as your doctor, I would not recommend you lying on this filthy floor. Actually, why are you still on the floor?" She shot Merritt a bit of an accusatory look.  
"He did not allow me to move him" Merritt cut the story very short.

Sarah realized that neither of the two men wanted to talk about what actually happened, so she decided not to press the matter.  
"Okay, you know what?" she said, "I don't even need to hear the story, but we are moving you now". She looked down at Danny, whose face had gone even paler at the idea of being moved.  
"Wait" Danny held up a hand to stop both Sarah and Merritt, "I can trust you, right?" Danny stared first at Sarah and then at Merritt as sternly as he could manage.  
"Yes, you can" Merritt said and Sarah nodded wordlessly in agreement. Danny pressed his eyes shut, as if he was quietly beating himself up over something.  
"I'm sorry" Danny finally said to Merritt, "I'm sorry I thought so badly of you. I should have known you would pull something like this, instead of getting me arrested at a hospital or by paramedics".  
"No offence taken" Merritt waved away Danny's apology, "just let her take care of you and don't die".  
For the first time that night, Danny managed the smallest of smiles.

* * *

With a lot of help from Sarah and Merritt, Danny finally got to his feet. He hung with nearly his full weight on Merritt's shoulders, who supported him as they slowly shuffled to the living room.  
Sarah was already busy there preparing the sofa, so Danny would be reasonably comfortable and she could start treating his wound.  
Once Danny was sort of comfortable on the sofa, Merritt retreated to the armchair on the other side of the room.

Sarah sat down on the edge of the sofa.  
"Take deep breaths" she said to Danny, "I am not going to lie to you: the next few minutes will not be pleasant for you". Danny did not look at all ready for what was about to happen, but slowly nodded his head by way of agreement.  
"Good" Sarah said, "if, at any moment, you need me to stop for a minute, just let me know".

The full extent of Danny's injuries became clear when Sarah carefully pulled away his shirt.  
She bent forward to have a closer look, but did not say a thing. Her hands were on Danny's stomach, gently feeling and pressing the area around the bullet-wound. Danny was almost constantly shaking beneath her hands.  
"Are you cold?" Sarah asked.  
"No" Danny answered softly, "I'm just… scared". Sarah looked him right in the eye and suddenly Danny knew why she had looked somewhat familiar to him. Her resemblance to Merritt was quite clear if you looked at her a little better. The same eyes, nose and lips.  
"Don't worry" she said, continuing her work, "you're scared because, for once, things are not in your control. Surrendering that control is what fears you, I understand that, but I need you to trust me". Danny knew that every word she said was spot on.  
"Are you a mentalist?" he asked with a hint of a laugh.  
"Not really" she answered, "my dad did teach me the basics, but I never really took to it".

Silence fell in the room. Danny simply watched as Sarah continued examining his wound.

"I'm giving you a local anaesthetic" she said after a little while, "I need to take out the bullet and it will require some sutures".  
"Sure, I wouldn't mind the pain going away" Danny answered wearily, "how bad does it look?"  
"Actually, you were very lucky" Sarah answered, "the wound is not extremely deep and no major organs are hit. You lost some blood, but nothing you're body can't cope with. It looks like the fabric of your shirt and jacket slowed the bullet down just enough to minimise the damage".  
"Why does it hurt so much than?" Danny asked.  
"The bullet hit some of your abdominal muscles, which is one of the most painful places for an injury" Sarah answered.

Danny was slightly comforted by Sarah's words. He lay very still as she worked to extract the bullet from his abdomen. The absence of pain, which the anaesthetic numbed completely, was a bliss to him.  
His control-freak mind wanted to follow Sarah's every move, see exactly what she was doing, but rationally he was not so sure he wanted to see. So, finally, Danny decided to give in to it all and let it happen to him for once. He closed his eyes and surrendered to the situation.

* * *

Danny did not know how much time had gone by, when he suddenly felt a soft shake to his shoulder.  
"Hey? You still with me?" Sarah asked him calmly.  
"Yeah" Danny answered wearily. He slowly opened his eyes and looked down to his stomach. The bullet-wound was neatly bandaged now and his skin was completely rinsed of all the spilled blood.  
"Thank you" Danny whispered.  
"Don't worry about it" Sarah waved away his gratitude.  
"Oh, I do" Danny's voice had now almost grown inaudible, "you saved my life".

It were the last words he spoke, before he drifted off into a deep sleep.

* * *

 **Thanks again for reading. Next chapter will be up asap again. All reviews, favs and follows are still highly appreciated! ;-)**


	3. Chapter 3

Sarah watched Danny for a few more seconds after he had fallen asleep, to make sure he would be alright. When she had assured herself of this, she took up the chair opposite Merritt.

For a little while there was silence between the two of them.  
"Thank you for coming" Merritt finally said.  
"Anytime" Sarah answered, "there never was a doubt in my mind when you called me". Merritt did not know what to say next, so he simply looked at his daughter.

"Speaking of phone calls" Merritt suddenly jumped to his feet, "I should probably inform Jack and Henley about what happened". It was evident that he felt he had to do this, but was certainly not looking forward to making that call.  
Merritt picked up the wireless phone from the charger and quickly dialled a number. As the phone rang, he put it on speaker, so Sarah could listen to the conversation as well.

"Hello?" A voice on the other side of the line said hesitantly after a few rings.  
"Henley, it's me" Merritt spoke into the phone.  
"Oh God, Merritt, it's good to hear you! Did you guys get away safely?" Henley asked. "Yes, I did..." Merritt said. Something in the way he spoke the words, made Henley realise immediately that something was not right.  
"Merritt, what's going on?" she asked, not quite able to keep the worry out of her voice.  
Merritt struggled a bit for the best way to break the news before he finally answered her. "It's Danny. He's been shot".

A hysterical shriek sounded from the phone, followed by uncontrolled sobs.  
"Henley! What's wrong?!" Jack could be heard saying. His voice grew louder with each word, as if he was moving towards the phone.  
"Danny… he's been… shot" Henley sobbed.  
"What?!" Jack sounded both shocked and worried.

No one spoke for a full minute. The only sounds came from Henley's sobs sounding through the telephone.  
"Merritt?" Jack's voice finally sounded.  
"Hey, Jack" Merritt answered gravely.  
"What happened?" Jack asked.  
"You remember that lady from Interpol, Alma Dray? Well, she shot Danny when we were escaping the theatre" Merritt cut the story quite short. Jack responded with something very foul-mouthed about Alma, to which Merritt raised an eyebrow in surprise.

"What are we going to do now?" Henley suddenly asked, voice sounding very thick.  
"I know someone here we can trust" Merritt said, "she's been taking care of him. We did all we could, but for now we'll just have to wait and see how it develops. Renewed sobs from Henley sounded through the phone after hearing this answer.

Sarah turned in her seat and looked around at Danny. Henley's distressed sounds caused him to stir and groan softly. Sh e feared that Danny would be woken up by the sounds, but luckily his signs of life were only short-lived and he slept on.

"Merritt?" Henley spoke in a broken voice, "Is he… is he going to be alright? He… he won't… die, will he?"  
Merritt looked hesitantly at his daughter, clearly not knowing how to answer truthfully, to which Sarah silently shook her head in reply. Merritt sighed in relief before he answered Henley.  
"He'll be fine, he won't die".

* * *

As soon as the line disconnected, Henley allowed herself to sink down on a chair. She sat there, staring into empty space, silent tears streaming down her face.  
Jack still stood next to the table where the telephone lay, a look of utter shock on his face.

Even though Merritt had assured them that Danny would be fine in the end, the news of him being shot had shaken Jack and Henley to their very cores. It made them realise more then ever what the FBI and Interpol were ready to do to arrest the Four Horsemen.  
Jack shook his head to rid his mind of those thoughts and turned around to Henley. It was obvious that she was struggling to cope with the entire situation. He walked over to her and sat down on the ground next to her chair.  
"You heard Merritt, he'll be fine" Jack said soothingly, placing a hand on Henley's forearm.  
But still..." Henley said softly, "they shot him, Jack. They could easily have killed him. And now he's injured and in pain, and there is nothing I can do...".  
"Don't worry. Merritt said they had help. I am certain they will be taking good care of him" Jack tried to ease her mind. Henley looked up at Jack and he immediately realised that he had said something wrong.  
"But it is not about that at all, is it?" Jack said softly, shaking his head slowly and staring down at his feet now.  
"No" Henley answered, "they could have gone to the best hospital in town and it would not make a difference for me… I am not there with him..."  
Jack felt incredibly stupid and remained silent.  
"It's okay" Henley said sweetly to ease Jack's feelings of guilt and placed a quick kiss on the top of his head, "it's not your fault".

Henley rose to her feet.  
"I'm off to bed" she said, "see you in the morning".  
Jack knew that Henley would not be able to get one minute of sleep this night and that this merely was an excuse for her to be alone. He would grant her wish and watched her as she retreated into the bedroom and closed the door behind her.

Since their apartment only had one bedroom, Jack was convicted to sleeping on the sofa. He did not mind, he had even insisted on doing so.

Lying on his back on the sofa, he absentmindedly fiddled with a stack of playing cards. He forced himself to close his eyes, but he already knew that he, like Henley, would probably not get much sleep tonight.  
Jack had always idolized Danny, and working closely with him had not changed his opinion. On the contrary even: his respect and admiration for Danny's endless energy, skills and showmanship had only grown.

Jack opened his eyes briefly to glimpse at his watch. 11.30 pm. It was going to be a long night...

* * *

After they had hung up the phone, Merritt and Sarah had started talking in hushed voices to prevent waking up Danny.

Ever since the Four Horsemen had gotten the anonymous assignment and had started the preparations for their shows, Merritt and Sarah had not seen a lot of each other. They had had regular contact over the phone, but their employer had forbidden Merritt to share any information about their plans with his daughter. Merritt had agreed, telling Sarah only the little bit that he could.

Their year with very little face-to-face contact left them with quite some catching up to do. Sarah told Merritt of life in New Orleans and her work in the ER of the largest hospital in the city, while Merritt told her a little more of the Four Horsemen and their shows so far. Still he evaded telling her of the Eye, their anonymous employer or the stolen money.

They talked till the early morning. Like Sarah had predicted, Danny did not wake up once. He lay completely still, sleeping soundlessly.

It was around 2.30 am when Sarah stood up from her chair.  
"I should go, work tomorrow" she said. Merritt nodded wordlessly in understanding. He had had a good time sitting and just talking to his daughter, but understood that she had to go and, by the way, he himself should probably try to get some sleep as well.

Sarah walked over to Danny to check up on him one last time before leaving. She felt his strong and steady heartbeat as she gently pressed her fingers against his neck. His breathing too felt satisfactory: deep and regular. Lastly, she had another look at the bandaged wound, which still looked nice and clean, indicating that the wound had not started bleeding again.  
"He's doing fine" Sarah said, "I don't know what your plans are, but try to let him sleep as long as possible. Be careful with those stitches, you don't want to tear them apart. And keep a sharp eye on the wound for signs of renewed bleeding".  
"Okay" Merritt answered a little insecurely, "I think we can do that".  
"Oh, I nearly forgot" Sarah continued and took a small pot of pills from her bag, "painkillers. I'm sure he's going to need those. One pill every six hours, if necessary".  
Merritt took a few steps forward and suddenly embraced his daughter tightly.  
"Thank you for everything" he whispered, "and it was good to see you again".  
"You're welcome and likewise" Sarah answered and kissed Merritt on the cheek. She then turned around and left for home.

* * *

Dylan sat alone at the bar of a pub, drinking his third glass of whiskey. The alcohol had no effect on him yet, and even if it would he could not care less at this moment.  
He pondered over everything that had happened that evening. When Alma had told him that she had been able to shoot Daniel Atlas and that he had still managed to escape, he had angrily yelled at her for about fifteen minutes. He had told her that it was unacceptable that she had allowed an injured man to escape. In fact, that had not been really true. He had mostly been yelling at her for shooting Danny in the first place and thus jeopardising his plans, but, naturally, he could not tell her that.  
Dylan emptied his glass and looked at his phone.

2.45 am

He just began to wonder why he had not yet gotten the message that he was expecting, when his phone bleeped to indicate the arrival of a new text message. He picked up his phone and quickly read the message, a smile broadening on his face.

 _Daniel is fine, do not worry. Everything will proceed as planned. See you in New York._

"Now, finally, there is some good news" Dylan quietly muttered to himself.  
He emptied his glass with one last gulp and left for his apartment. The show was on the road again.

* * *

 **Thanks for reading again. The next chapter will be up again asap. All reviews, favs and follows are still highly appreciated ;-)**


	4. Chapter 4

Danny woke up with a shock. It took him a few seconds to realise where he was and what had happened the night before. He breathed deeply a few times. In the last minutes of his sleep he had been reliving the chase and the shooting. The panic and adrenaline he had felt in the actual moment coursed through his veins again.

When the worst of the after-effects of the nightmare had gone, Danny looked around a little closer.  
Merritt sat saggedly in a comfortable armchair on the other side of the room, asleep and snoring with quite some volume. Danny smiled a little to himself. He had always considered Merritt to be someone who snored and was quite amused to see that he was right. Sarah was nowhere to be seen, so he figured she must have left. He made a mental note to himself to thank her once more if ever he would see her again.

Danny tried to determine what time it was. He did not wear a watch and there was no clock in the apartment, so he could only guess. Just a patch of dark blue sky was visible through the half-closed curtains. The darkest of the night had already passed, but the sun was definitely not up yet. Danny guessed it would be around 4.30 or 5 am, but, no matter what the time exactly was, they were still some hours away from meeting up with the other Horsemen and flying back to New York. So first, a few more hours of precious sleep.

* * *

Henley had not had one minute of sleep, like she had already predicted. She had definitely tried, but, despite her efforts, images of Danny bleeding and screaming in pain kept invading her mind.  
Finally she decided to give up on it. She stood up from the bed with a deep sigh and quickly got dressed. The alarm clock on the night-stand told her it was 5.30 am. Early, but everything was better than lying in this bed and letting these torturous images displease her any longer.

Henley silently opened the door and looked around the living room. The first faint rays of sunlight shone in through one of the windows. Her eyes fell on Jack, who was lying on his side on the sofa, one arm dangling over the edge and fingers nearly touching the ground. Some playing cards were strewn across the floor, just beneath his fingers, like he had been holding them when falling asleep. Henley smiled briefly when she saw him like that. It was a peaceful and innocent sight in these stressful times.

She tried to close the bedroom door silently behind her so she did not have to wake up Jack just yet. But as soon as the lock clicked closed, Jack shot awake and instantly sat upright.  
"What?!" he blurted out, "is everything okay? Is there news?" Henley could not help but chuckle a little.  
"Good morning" she answered, "no, no further news".

Jack rubbed his eyes sleepily as Henley went over to their small kitchen to make some coffee.

"Jack!" Henley suddenly called out to him urgently, to which he jumped to his feet and almost ran over to her. He did even have to ask what Henley had meant.

A fresh pot of coffee sat on the kitchen table with a neat, white envelope propped up against it.

"What the..." was all Jack managed to say.  
"You mean you didn't do this?" Henley sounded a little frightened now.  
"No, it wasn't me" Jack answered, "should we open it?"  
"I think so" Henley said a little uncertainly.

Jack carefully took the envelope, half-expecting something to happen straight away. He slowly pulled a piece of paper out, the size of a postcard. It showed a map, marked with a red X, a time and something that looked like a licence plate number. They were now both certain that this came from their anonymous employer.  
"It looks like we have to go there" Henley said, "the map shows this block. The indicated spot is just around the corner from here". Jack nodded silently in agreement.  
"We'll know more at ten o'clock" he added quietly.

* * *

"Danny! Come on, man, wake up!"  
Merritt was carefully shaking his shoulder when Danny drowsily opened his eyes.  
"Good morning" Merritt continued, seeing Danny was waking up, now, "we have further instructions. We have to leave in 20 minutes". Danny yawned widely and slowly sat upright, which went with a lot less effort than he had been expecting.  
"Where do we need to go?" he asked.  
"Just down the block" Merritt answered, "it looks like there will be a driver waiting for us". He handed Danny the postcard they too had received.  
Merritt studied Danny's physique as the young man inspected the postcard with their instructions.  
"How are you feeling?" He asked.  
"Fine, I guess" Danny answered, never looking up from the postcard, "given the circumstances it could be a lot worse".  
"Good" Merritt said relieved and went on with the preparations for their departure.

Danny slowly got to his feet. He felt a little dizzy when he first stood, but luckily that passed quickly.  
He carefully took off his bloodied shirt and changed into a more casual looking t-shirt. In the meantime, Merritt was rummaging around the apartment and picking up their belongings.  
"You ready?" Merritt finally turned to Danny, "you think you can handle it?" Danny looked up at Merritt and he allowed just a moment of silence before he spoke.  
"Let's do this".

* * *

At exactly 10 am Jack and Henley stood waiting at the indicated location, looking around for a car with the plate number they had been given. Henley could tell Jack was nervous by the way he kept fidgeting with a few playing cards. She herself could feel the nerves too. A reunion with Danny must be getting close and she was aching to see him.  
"There!" Jack suddenly cried out, pointing towards a taxi. And indeed, the car that approached them bore the licence plate number they had been given. Jack immediately opened the door as the car stopped in front of them and was a little confused to find the car empty except for thr driver.  
"Taxi for Mr. Wilder and Ms. Reeves?" the driver asked the two of them.  
"Yes, that's us" Jack answered as he and Henley quickly got in the car, "but there should be two more people".  
"No" the driver answered, "I only received instructions to collect you two and take you to New Orleans airport, private plane section".  
"Oh" was all Jack responded with.  
" I guess they'll be going there separately" Henley said to him.  
"Yes, they must" Jack answered a little absentmindedly.

The taxi ride felt like it took an age. The traffic was quite bad, making their progress slow.

They still assumed Danny and Merritt would be flying back with the same plane, and both Jack and Henley were keen on their reunion.

Jack eyed Henley suspiciously during their ride, for she looked a little pale.  
"Are you alright?" he finally asked her.  
"I will be a lot better when Danny tells me, straight to my face, that he will be fine" she answered quietly. Jack stared at her for a little while. He had only just realised how deep-rooted her feelings for Danny truly were. Not that she would ever admit to it if asked, but right now she simply could not hide it from him. He didn't mind, it was a secret he would gladly keep for her.

* * *

Finally the taxi took the final turn and drove the last lane towards the private plane section of the airport. It stopped next to a meduim-sized plane, stairs down and ready for them to enter. Jack made to pay the driver, but the man waved it away."Has all been arranged" he said. Jack and Henley looked at him in surprise for a moment, but then quickly got out of the car.

As soon as Henley's feet touched the ground, she ran over to the plane and up the stairs. Once inside she scanned around in search for Danny, but she only found Merritt standing in the aisle between the seats.  
"Hello, sweeth..." Merritt began, but was immediately interrupted.  
"Where is he?" A little hysteria sounded in Henley's voice.  
"Calm down" Merritt answered, "he's right there". He indicated a few seats behind him, near the end of the row. Henley instantly dropped her bag to the floor, pushed past Merritt and hurried to the other side of the plane.

Danny had heard Jack and Henley come in and had just risen to his feet when Henley reached him. She hesitated a few seconds, but then rushed forwards and flung her arms tightly around him. There were no actual words that could describe what she felt right now, so she poured it all in that embrace.  
"Henley" Danny groaned softly for Henley had struck slightly into his wound, "its good to see you too, but... bullet-wound here". Henley immediately let go of him.  
"Sorry" she muttered, while quickly wiping her cheeks and trying to hide the fact that she had been crying.

Danny sat down in his seat at the window again and Henley took up the aisle seat next to him.  
The captain's voice came over the intercom, informing them of their imminent departure for New York.

Henley looked a little closer at Danny as he stared out of the window. He sat a little saggedly, hands folded across his chest and elbows resting on the armrests. His face wore a tired expression.  
"How're you feeling?" Henley asked and her fingers gently reached for Danny's arm.  
"Okay" Danny answered wearily. The trip to the airport alone had already cost him a lot of energy and the wound had started emanating a dull throbbing pain again.  
"Do you think you'll be able to do the show?" Henley continued. Danny shrugged slightly.  
"I'll have to" he said. The determination was clear in his voice and eyes.

* * *

The plane had started to move and was taxiing in the direction of the runway.  
Henley turned in her seat to look around at where Jack and Merritt were sitting. They were heavily engaged in a conversation of their own. Henley caught the words 'FBI', 'gun' and some less savoury words, so she figured they were discussing the shooting and Alma Dray. She smiled as she heard Jack call Alma something she had never expected to hear from his mouth. Judging by the way Merritt laughed out loud, he had not been expecting to hear that either.  
"Boys" Henley sighed with a chuckle and sat straight again. She wanted to say something to Danny about it, but found that he was asleep. He had leaned his head against the window and was actually looking quite peaceful. Henley carefully shifted into a more comfortable position and gently let her head rest against Danny's upper arm. Feeling his body warmth and hearing his deep breathing, she was finally assured of his wellbeing and finally found the peace to fall asleep too.

* * *

Neither of the Four Horsemen noticed the person watching them as their plane taxied away and eventually took off.

As the plane's wheels lost their contact with the ground, the person's mobile phone rang.  
"Detective Rhodes" the person answered the device, "just the person I need to talk to. Their plane just left, they're on their way to New York". The person listened to something Rhodes was saying on the other end of the line.  
"Okay, no problem" the person finally confirmed, "Grand Central Station, 10 pm tonight. I'll be there".

* * *

 **Thanks for reading again. Next chapter will be up soon again. All favs, follows and reviews are always welcome ;-)**


	5. Chapter 5

Dylan took up his seat next to Alma with an agitated sigh. The plane to New York was only slowly filling up with the other passengers and, frankly, his patience was wearing thin today. Once again the FBI was on the hunt for the Four Horsemen.

"I do hope they're right about these Horsemen being in New York" Dylan complained.  
Alma just laughed at him. "They're your own people" she said. Dylan did not respond to that and chose not to take her comment the wrong way.  
"Besides" Alma continued, "the Horsemen cloned your phone and kept the real one all this time. It makes sense to assume that they still have it. The phone is in New York, therefore I am certain that they are too". Dylan merely nodded to indicate that he believed she was right.

Naturally, Dylan was a 100% certain that the Horsemen were in New York. He even knew their exact location.  
He had been able to sneak a message to them to inform them of the estimated time of arrival of the FBI, left some further instructions and could now only hope that everything would go as planned. He also knew that the Horsemen's plane had landed in the Big Apple already two hours ago, which gave them a good head-start to the FBI.

It had been Dylan who had arranged the Horsemen's esacpe from New Orleans and had gotten them secretly to New York. He had arranged the private plane, bribed two taxi-drivers and had broken, unseen, into two different apartments to plant the information. It had been tricky, but he had pulled it off.

"Hey! I'm talking to you!" Dylan's train of thought interrupted by Alma's voice and a soft punch to the arm.  
"Sorry" he muttered, "I'm listening now. You were saying?" Alma immediately continued talking about the Horsemen and what she suspected to be their motives. Dylan only listened to half of what she was saying, which actually was not too far from the truth, but his mind was far more occupied with the Horsemen's next move to pay too much attention. He answered with some well-placed hums and nods to make it look like he was all ears, but in fact his thoughts had wandered miles off. 

* * *

"Are we really sure about this?" Jack asked his fellow Horsemen, "I mean, our employer's plan never said anything about one of us faking our own death".

The Horsemen were back at their apartment in New York, going over the last details of their show of the following day and cleaning up for the FBI-raid they knew was coming.  
Danny sat on the couch, legs outstretched across the cushions, and Merritt sat on a chair next to him. Together they were filtering through a stack of papers, deciding what needed to be burned and what could be left for the FBI to find. Henley was rummaging through a cupboard, deciding on the same faith of the items in there. Jack was the only one not truly occupied. He nervously paced up and down the room, wringing his hands together in visible discomfort.

"Don't you think it will look suspicious if one of us just doesn't turn up for our own show? The FBI would be all over you in a second" Danny said, answering Jack's remark, "trust me, this is the best way".  
"Relax, Jack" Merritt brought in, "you're not dying for real".  
"Yeah, thank you" Jack said sarcastically and a little irritably, "I understand the concept of _faking_ one's death".  
"Guys, just stop this" Henley suddenly said sharply, "we have discussed this before and we have agreed on doing this, so this is how it will be done". The three men looked a little surprised at her.  
"Sorry" Jack muttered after a short silence, "you're right".

Out of the blue, the computer on one of the desks started blaring.  
"That's the firewall breach" Henley remarked and walked over to the computer, "they'll be here any minute now". Danny threw a stack of papers at Jack, who caught it effortlessly.  
"These need to be burned" Danny said, "the rest can be left".  
"Okay" Jack answered, the nervousness yet clearer on his face and in his voice now.

Merritt had walked over to the window and was peering through the blinds to keep a close eye on the street below. Traffic was quite slow: a few cars, some pedestrians and a bike messenger. No sign of any FBI-vehicles yet.  
A taxi-driver honked his horn at the bike messenger who had suddenly swerved past right in front of his car. On the sidewalk a person talking on the phone, wearing a sweater with the hood up, turned around to look at what was happening. For just a second Merritt could see the face.  
"What the..." Merritt muttered shocked. He took a step back from the window and was doubting if he had really seen what he thought he had seen.  
"Are they here?" Henley asked.  
"No" Merritt answered immediately, "I thought I saw….someone I knew, but that's impossible..."  
He peered through the blinds again, but the hooded person was no longer on the sidewalk. Merritt shook his head to get his focus back. No matter what he thought he had seen, it just could not be.

"Come on, we need to go!" Henley gave Danny a hand to get up from the couch.  
"You know what to do, Jack" Merritt said to the young magician, "don't worry, you can do this". Jack nodded wordlessly and watched as his fellow Horsemen left him alone in the apartment.

As soon as the door closed, Jack picked up the stack op papers that still needed to be burned and started throwing them in the hearth. He could hear sirens and cars screech to a halt on the street below. Undoubtedly the FBI had arrived.  
Jack quickly threw the last of the papers into the fire and retreated to the hiding place he had scouted out on top of a wardrobe in the corner of the room.

Then he waited… 

* * *

Merritt, Henley and Danny slid down the garbage chute to the basement of the apartment building.

Danny's feet hit the ground a lot harder than he had anticipated as he exited the chute. A blinding pain shot through his stomach and he fell to his knees, holding his bandaged wound gently and breathing heavily.  
"Danny!" Henley exclaimed. She knelt down in front of him and placed her hands on either side of his face. "Are you okay?" she asked, fear in her voice. Danny slowly looked up at her and she could see his eyes watered a little in pain.  
"I think I tore a stitch, but I'll live" he answered a little out of breath. Danny knew they had no time to lose, so he bit through the pain and quickly got to his feet and ran on.

They took the back exit. Merritt hailed over a taxi and one immediately stopped for them. They quickly got in and left the apartment building and the FBI behind them.

It was only a short ride to the edge of an industrial area where the taxi dropped Merritt, Henley and Danny off. In one of the many warehouses in this area was where the Horsemen kept their things for the moment.  
They quickly changed into the disguises they would be wearing for the next part of their plan.  
Danny took a few seconds to examine his wound. He had badly angered it when landing at the bottom of the garbage chute, but it appeared all stitches were still intact and no fresh bleeding could be seen. He sighed quietly in relief and turned around at the other two Horsemen. The moment he was face-to-face with Henley, she burst out laughing and Merritt soon joined in as well.  
"What?" Danny asked.  
"No, nothing, mustache-man. Looking good!" Merritt answered, still with a big smile on his face.  
"I could have known it was about that" Danny muttered.  
"I'm sorry" Henley giggled, "but it just looks really strange on you". Danny raised an eyebrow at her and cocked his head slightly to the side. "Well, remind me never to get a mustache then" he commented.

Merritt got behind the wheel of a school bus, while Henley would be driving a regular car and Danny a taxi. It was all part of their plan leading up to their final show and they had been planning and preparing this for months now.  
"Will you be okay driving?" Henley asked Danny.  
"Stop worrying about me" Danny answered a bit edgy now, "as you can see I am doing fine". Henley gave him a hurt look, but decided to let him be. She watched him get behind the wheel of the taxi, before she herself took up the driver's seat of her car.

The three cars drove out of the warehouse, on their way to one of New York's main roads and bridges. The plan was in motion… 

* * *

Dylan's heart nearly stopped when he saw the car in front of him hit the barrier and flip over. It rolled over countless times, before finally skidding to a halt, upside down, in a heap of crushed and burning metal.

Alma stomped on the breaks and stopped the car she and Dylan were in about a 100 yards from the burning vehicle. Dylan jumped out before the car had even fully stopped and ran over to the wreck. He knew deep down that it was unlikely, close to impossible even, for the driver to have survived such a crash, but he just did not want to believe it.

This was not good. This had never been his plan. He had never intended someone to die for him!

Dylan threw himself to the asphalt as he reached the wreck and attempted to pull out the driver.  
He could not believe that this was Jack Wilder. The crash had badly damaged the body and the flames of the fire were already licking its skin. Dylan used all his strength to pull the body out, but it was to no avail. He vaguely became aware of someone yelling at him and pulling at his jacket.  
"…. explode!" was the only word that Dylan truly registered. The other FBI-agent, who had been yelling, was right. The gas-tank of the car was leaking gasoline and would most likely explode any second.  
Dylan took one last pained look at the driver's body. "I'm sorry" he muttered, before jumping up and running away from the wreck in search for cover. 

* * *

The car exploded with an enormous explosion. Henley, Merritt and Danny could each see the cloud of black smoke from their rearview mirrors. They knew that Jack had not been in that wreck and that he was in fact safe. The plan had worked and the FBI was once again at least three steps behind them.

Merritt, Danny and Henley were on their way back to the warehouse where they had picked up the cars and they would stay there until the show of tomorrow. Later tonight they would be releasing a video message in memory of Jack and to announce their next show. Their final show... 

* * *

Jack had taken the exit off the main road and drove into a quiet part of the city. He would be lying low for several hours and as soon as evening had fallen he would be making his way to the Elkhorn warehouse which held their final target.

He steered the car onto an almost abandoned parking lot and parked under the cover of some trees on the far end of the terrain. The car's windows were tainted, so he did not have to worry too much about being spotted by passers-by. He pushed his seat back and stretched his legs out for as far as he could. Part one of the plan had gone well. Now it was up to him to make sure this last part would go right too. 

* * *

Dylan had never felt more miserable in his entire life. Someone had died today because of him, because of what he had asked them to do.

He was sitting alone on a bench in the main hall of New York's Grand Central Station. It was 9.55 pm, making him five minutes early for the appointment.

No matter how hard he tried, the images of Jack Wilder, damaged and burned beyond recognition, would not leave him alone. Dylan buried his face in his hands in complete misery. A terrible head-ache was starting to break through and all he wanted to do right now was crawl into a hole and never resurface.

A person sat down on the bench next to Dylan. He looked up long enough to see that it was whom he had been waiting for.  
"Oh, you're here…." Dylan's voice sounded muffled through his hands, but still the misery and the tiredness dripped from it.  
"You don't look too well, Dylan" the person commented. Dylan answered with a halfhearted shrug. "Don't care" he muttered, before falling silent again for a while.

"Sarah?" Dylan sounded broken as he addressed the person sitting next to him, "when I asked you to help me set my plan in motion, did you ever think someone would die for it?" He had dropped his hands into his lap and had now switched to staring glassily at the station floor.  
Sarah seemed to think hard on her answer to his question. "Well" she said slowly, "it is not exactly legal what we are doing, but someone dying? No".  
"What have we done?!" Dylan sighed miserably.  
"Nothing much" Sarah answered lightly, "because no one died". Dylan's head snapped up and for the first time in a long while he felt outsmarted.  
"Be kind, rewind" he said in utter disbelief.  
"Jack Wilder did not die" Sarah answered, "his 'death' was part of their plan". Dylan looked at her as if he had just had an encounter with an entire horde of ghosts.  
"How do you know this?" Dylan asked in the end.  
"Because I saw him at the Elkhorn warehouse" Sarah said, "he is probably hiding out there until your men discover the safe is gone, waiting for his chance to strike".  
"Are you serious?" Dylan had trouble believing her, "it this for real?"  
"I would never lie about something like this" Sarah gave him a bit of a stern look.

Dylan rose to his feet and felt a huge weight slide off his shoulders. He was not guilty for someone's death. At least, not for a real death anyway. Right now it did not matter how or why the Horsemen had done this, all that mattered now was that Jack Wilder was not dead.  
"I think you made my day" Dylan told Sarah and he dared to smile a little in relief.  
"I hope so" Sarah answered with a laugh, "you looked like you could use it".  
"They did scare me, though" Dylan said.  
"I can see that" Sarah commented.

She stood up too and fished a subway ticket out of her pocket. "I need to go" she said, "it's getting late".  
"Yeah, you're right" Dylan answered, checking his watch, "I should probably get back to Alma. She might start to wonder where I went".

Sarah raised a hand in a silent goodbye and turned around to leave.  
"Sarah?" Dylan called after her, "it's good to have you by my side in all this..." 

* * *

**Thanks again for reading and for all your lovely reviews, favs and follows! The next chapter will be up asap again. And still: all reviews are highly appreciated ;-)**


	6. Chapter 6

"It certainly does look cool" Merritt commented. He, Danny and Henley were at the warehouse, watching the news broadcast of the chase and car crash on a laptop.  
"Yeah, it couldn't have been done better" Henley added, "let's hope the rest of the plan goes as well as this".

The three remaining Horsemen had just broadcasted their memorial for Jack and the announcement of their final show at Five Pointz. They would be staying in the warehouse for a few more hours, before going there.

Henley cast a nervous glance at Danny. She had noticed a slight tremble had started in his hands and he had gone quite pale. She feared he had over-exerted himself with all the activities of the day, but she did not dare to confront him about it. Most likely he would be irritated by her worries for him and Henley was very keen on avoiding a fight. So, she decided to keep a watchful eye on him, but remain silent of her concerns. They still had a couple of hours until the next part of their show, perhaps some rest would do him good.

* * *

"Where's the safe?!" the FBI agents stormed into the Elkhorn warehouse. The safe they had expected to find in there was nowhere to be seen.  
"Where is it?!" Dylan fumed, turning on the security guards of Elkhorn.  
"We received orders to load up the safe and relocate it to Five Pointz" one of the guards answered quickly, "about 20 minutes ago".  
"Five Pointz?" Dylan repeated. The guard merely nodded, fearing that Dylan might strangle him if he uttered one more word.  
"Who gave you orders for that?" Dylan continued.  
"He did" the guard motioned towards Detective Evans.  
"No, that's bullshit!" Dylan blurted out.

The effect was instantaneous. Upon hearing that word, Evans froze up and within seconds he was deeply engaged in passionately playing an imaginary violin.  
"Well that explains it..." Dylan growled, before turning around and storming out of the warehouse.  
"We need to stop that truck! Now!" he called angrily over his shoulder. The agents and security personnel followed him at a run, leaving the warehouse empty again.

Everyone was oblivious to the figure hiding in a dark, cluttered up corner of the warehouse. Behind some smaller safes, close to the only door to the warehouse, Jack Wilder had been watching the entire scene unfold and now the opportunity he had been waiting for presented itself.

* * *

Breaking into the Elkhorn warehouse was simple. For a company specializing in safes, they sure used crappy locks and security systems to protect their own property.

After de-activating the alarm, Jack carefully sneaked in and activated the alarm again from the inside. He had already scouted out that the warehouse did not hold any motion sensors, so he could move around freely without setting off any sirens. He retreated to his hiding place behind some smaller safes in a darker part of the warehouse.  
The security guards had loaded up the real safe just minutes ago. Jack's skills of voice imitation had proved valuable when he had phoned the company, impersonation Detective Evans, and ordered them to relocate the safe to Five Pointz for security reasons. They had not even thought twice and had immediately complied.

It would not be long now before the FBI would arrive here too. The document leading them here had purposefully been left in the wreckage of the crashed car.  
And indeed, the wailing of sirens reached his ears and it rapidly came closer. Suddenly all the sirens stopped at once and there was an eerie silence for about half a minute. The FBI was readying themselves for the raid…

Jack heard the beeps of the alarm code being entered. He made himself as small as possible and kept extremely quiet.

The sounds of the FBI entering filled the warehouse.  
"Where's the safe?"! Dylan could be heard saying. Jack knew that he would probably not have to wait long before Dylan uttered his favourite curse-word.  
"That's bullshit!" Dylan's words echoed through the empty warehouse. The shocked sounds of the other agents meant that the hypnosis had worked and that Evans had started his violin routine.  
Stomping footsteps sounded, the warehouse door slammed shut and screeching tires could be heard outside. And just like that, Jack was alone again. He waited another five minutes, just to be sure, before carefully standing up. It was showtime…

* * *

Henley quietly got dressed for the show, which they would be starting in about 30 minutes. She cast a glance over her shoulder at Danny, who was getting dressed as well. He was clumsily putting on his shirt, fighting with one of the sleeves. Henley's eyes, however, were drawn to the bandage on his stomach. She swallowed hard when she saw it. No matter what Danny told her, she knew that the wound would hurt like hell and that he was most likely constantly biting through the pain.

Danny finally managed to wrestle the sleeve in the correct position. He topped it off with a jacket and looked up to find Henley staring at him.  
"What?" he asked her with a slight smile. Henley quickly averted her gaze from him.  
"Nothing..." she mumbled.

"Alright, ready to go?" Merritt asked his fellow Horsemen.  
"Sure" Danny answered. Henley looked around to see if she had left anything of importance, because she knew they were not coming back here. "Yes, ready" she finally answered.  
The three of them walked out of the room. Through seemingly endless corridors of the abandoned building, they reach another room. Three projectors stood ready for them in the centre, one for each Horsemen.  
Merritt, Henley and Danny took up their positions in front of the equipment. The roars and cheers of the large crowd sounded as the lightshow started. Henley took a deep breath to calm her nerves and looked from Danny to Merritt. "Here we go, boys".

* * *

Jack gave the sledgehammer an almighty swing and let it slip from his hands at the right moment. With a deafening crash it hit the large mirror that had been hiding the real safe from view, shattering it into a millions pieces. A smile crossed his face as the real safe appeared.  
He glanced over his shoulder at Detective Evans, who was still performing the violin concert, before stepping forward to apply the explosives.

The door of the safe fell to the floor like a cheap microwave door after the explosives had done their job.  
"Wow..." Jack whispered to himself. His enthusiasm was hard to contain now that he had pulled off the trick, but an important task was still to be done. He quickly reached for the bags he had brought and started loading them up with the money from the safe.

Jack was suddenly startled by a person coughing softly behind him. He spun round, dropping the bag and playing cards ready to strike at anyone who was there.  
It was a woman. She did not look menacing at all, and she was clearly not with the law enforcement. She had blonde hair, wore a hooded sweater and had a friendly look over her. But still Jack was suspicious.  
"Who are you? What do you want?" Jack demanded to know. Instead of answering, the woman took two steps in his direction. Jack raised the cards a little higher, ready to strike.  
"Stop it" it were the first words she spoke, "I know that trick quite well myself". She did not sound menacing or threatening.  
"That's no answer to my questions" Jack said as sternly as he could.  
"My name is Sarah" she answered, "and I know that you are Jack Wilder and I also know why you are here. I have come to assist you". Jack shamelessly stared at her, unable to utter a single word or even produce a sound.  
"You have a last name?" he finally asked after a full minute of silence.  
"McKinney" she answered. Jack's eyes widened to unhealthy size upon hearing that name.  
"As in Merritt McKinney?" he asked incredulously.  
"Absolutely" Sarah answered, "he's my father".  
"So, are you…. our employer?" Jack stammered.  
"No. No, I'm not" Sarah answered, "I am only here to help you plant that money in Thaddeus' car".

Jack hesitated. His gut told him she was no threat to him, but his mind told him to be careful. Because, how did she know the money needed to be planted in Thaddeus' car? How had she known where to find him? Hell, how had she even known that he had only faked his death?  
"You work for him?" Jack asked hesitantly, "our employer, I mean".  
"Yes" Sarah answered, "and I know just as little about him as the four of you". Jack studied her a little longer. He could see the resemblance with Merritt now that he knew.  
"Alright" he finally said to her, deciding to go with his gut-feeling, "let's do this".

* * *

The first part of the show had gone well, but that had not been the tricky part. They had performed in front of the projectors and would now soon be really appearing in front of the audience.

The freight elevator was taking them to the roof, from where they would be performing tonight's greatest trick.  
Merritt, Henley and Danny had been talking, but had now fallen silent. Danny stood in one of the corners of the elevator. His eyes were unfocussed, seemingly lost in thought. Henley noticed he was still quite pale and the tremble in his hands had become more pronounced. As soon as the show was on, Danny's showmanship took over and you could hardly tell the difference from usual, but Henley worried over his condition after the show. What would happen to him when there was nothing to be strong for anymore?

The elevator stopped with a shock and the three of them stepped out. They were on the top floor of the building and climbed the short stairway that still separated them from the world outside.

A massive cheer rose up from the audience as the Horsemen appeared on the roof. The blinding lights had been obscuring their entrance, making it look like they had appeared from nowhere.

"There is always a time to say goodbye" Henley's voice echoed through the cool evening air.  
"And tonight it is our turn to say goodbye to you" Danny followed, voice and posture as steady as always. The outside world would probably never know of his injury.  
"We thank you all for your support, your endless enthusiasm and of course for being here tonight" Merritt finished.

Henley, standing in the middle, held out a hand to both Merritt and Danny, which they both took. They raised their hands into the air.  
"Thank you all for believing in us" they said in unison, "we are the Four Horsemen. Goodnight!"  
They let go of each other's hands and broke into a run to the side of the building. The blinding lights turned back on, giving them just enough time to throw themselves through the entrance to the roof again and back inside. The projectors took over outside, making it appear as if they had jumped off the roof and turned into paper money.

Merritt, Henley and Danny dashed off the stairs as fast as their legs would carry them.  
They reached the ground floor in no time and ran through an unlit emergency exit and continued over the empty terrain behind Five Pointz. Once again they left everything behind: their audience, the FBI and this time their mission as well.

* * *

"I thought you said you shot him?!" Dylan fumed at Alma over the roars of the crowd.  
"I did shoot him" Alma replied a little offended.  
"He looks fine to me" Dylan retorted. The two of them had just watched Danny perform his part with all his usual confidence and posture. Nothing even hinted at an injury on the young magician.

Dylan and Alma watched the Horsemen from a few floors lower. There was no way they were ever getting on the same level, let alone get close to the magicians.  
"What are they doing?!" Alma yelled as the Horsemen had suddenly broken into a run and were moving towards the side of the building.  
"They're getting away again!" Dylan yelled more to himself than actually talking to Alma. He took out his gun and aimed for the running figures on the roof.  
"No!" Alma screamed and frantically hit Dylan's hands away just as he pulled the trigger. The bullet shot up towards the night sky, missing its target by miles and the Horsemen disappeared from view unscathed.  
Dylan turned to look at Alma. "I could have had them!" he said, "what'd you do that for?!"  
Alma shrugged and with a shy smile she answered, "I guess they have grown on me". Dylan stared at her in utter astonishment, before his face broke into a wide smile.

* * *

"Are you sure this is the place?" Jack asked a little hesitantly as Sarah steered the car into a parking garage.  
"Yes" she answered lightly, "I have been watching this guy for a while now and this is where he always parks his car. They even reserve a space for him here".  
"So you live here, in New York?" Jack asked her.  
"No" Sarah said, "I live in New Orleans. You know the city, I presume?"  
"Yeah, not too fond memories of it by the way" Jack answered, "one of us got shot when we were there".  
"I think I was among the first to know about that" Sarah said meaningfully. It took Jack a few seconds to reach the conclusion.  
"It was you!" he finally exclaimed, "you are the help Merritt told us about!".  
Sarah nodded. "I used to be doctor. ER-surgeon. But I gave up that job quite recently actually. Combining a secret mission with a full-time job is not ideal". Jack laughed at her. He was now certain that he had made the right choice in trusting this woman.

Jack and Sarah quietly got out of the car.  
"Any security cameras?" Jack asked in a whisper.  
"Only covering the entrances and exits" Sarah answered. Jack had unloaded the bags with the money and handed several of them to Sarah. They crept over to Thaddeus' car. Jack carefully gave one of the door handles of the car a pull, but it was locked.  
"Did you really think that was going to work?" Sarah commented with a slight snort.  
"No" Jack answered confidently, "but at least we know that either his alarm isn't working or he forgot to turn it on".  
"Good one" Sarah said, "but it's still locked".  
"Oh, no" Jack looked at her with a devilish smile, "nothing's ever locked".

* * *

 **Thanks for reading again. All reviews, favs and follows are still highly appreciated.**


	7. Chapter 7

Sarah parked the car in the shadows under a bridge a few blocks from Five Pointz. A train rattled overhead as she switched the car's engine off and waited for what was about to come.  
To the right of her car, a person moved in the shadows. Sarah recognized him immediately and waved him over.

Dylan stepped into the car with Sarah and gave her a broad smile.  
"All went well" he said.  
"Same on my end" Sarah replied.  
"And where did you leave the not-so-dead Mr. Wilder?" Dylan asked.  
"Central Park" Sarah answered, "like the original plan. He should be meeting up there with the others around now".

Sarah and Dylan drove to Central Park in silence. Dylan stared out of the window with a look of satisfaction and a hint of disbelief on his face. He had done it. He had pulled off the plan that had been brewing in his mind for years.  
"Thank you" he suddenly said, turning to Sarah.  
"What for?" she answered, not looking at him, but keeping her eyes on the road.  
"I could never have done all this on my own" Dylan confessed, "it has been good to have someone I can rely on".  
Sarah drove the car into a garage near one of the entrances to Central Park and parked it. She sat back in her seat to look at Dylan.  
"You don't have to thank me" she said, "you know I had my reasons for helping you".  
"Sure" Dylan agreed, "but you did not have to do it, although I am glad that you decided to be part of this".

Sarah and Dylan got out of the car and walked to the entrance to the park.  
"Alright" Dylan said, "I'm going to scare some people".  
"Good luck" Sarah smiled at him, "and see you later". Dylan waved a quick goodbye at her and made his way to the carousel in the middle of the park. He would finally show the Horsemen who he truly was…

* * *

"Now what?" Merritt said a little irritably. He, Henley and Danny had arrived at Central Park at the location the instructions had indicated. They had, however, run into a locked gate, preventing them from going any further. Merritt rattled the gate again, just to be sure.  
"It's locked" he said after concluding the gate really was not going to open.  
"Wait, something's moving!" Henley whispered urgently, peering through the bars.  
"It is… him?" Merritt asked hopefully.

It was difficult to see because of the dim lighting on the other side, but surely a person was walking towards them.  
"Don't I keep telling you that nothing's ever locked?" the person suddenly spoke.  
"Jack!" Henley exclaimed happily, recognizing him now he got closer.

Jack reached through the bars and easily picked the lock. The gates swung open and allowed the three remaining Horsemen to go through.  
"Well done" Merritt said, patting Jack on the shoulder, "faking your own death? I guess you're one of the big guys now". Jack only answered him with a broad smile.

"So, the problem of the locked gate is solved, but the question 'now what?' still applies" Danny spoke for the first time in a long while, "the instructions told us to go here, not what to do once we got here. So we do whatever this guy wants and then he just dumps us in Central Park?"  
Henley turned around to look at Danny. She had never seen him this cranky before, and they had definitely had their share of fights. But before Henley could say anything, it was Jack who spoke up.  
"Lucky for you optimists I have been here quite some time now and had a chance to look around. I think I found where we need to go. Follow me".

Jack led the other Horsemen further down the path and away from the gate.  
"I think this is where we were supposed to go" he said after a few minute's walk, pointing to a large tree ahead.  
"Oh, brilliant, Jack" Danny said crankily, "it's a tree. Like this is the only tree in Central Park. What makes you think _this_ is the tree we need to be at?" Henley whirled around and glared angrily at Danny.  
"What is wrong with you?!" she hissed venomously through her teeth. For the first time since their escape from Five Pointz she had a chance to study Danny more closely, and she did not like what she saw. Danny looked worse than ever: he was white as a sheet, clearly sweating and he swayed a little on his feet as he stood still. Henley's stomach dropped and all her anger evaporated at once.  
"Oh god" she whispered. "this was too much right? You're not feeling well?" A look of vulnerability flashed across Danny's face. It was there for only a second, but it was enough for Henley to know that she was right.  
"Hold on" she whispered, "almost there..."

"This is not just any tree" Jack explained. He completely ignored Danny's outburst and was oblivious to the hushed conversation Danny and Henley had had. Merritt, too, had a closer look at the tree.  
"The Lionel Shrike tree" he muttered, "of course..."

Henley could not explain why, but she thoughtlessly pulled out the card they had all received from their anonymous employer. The others followed her example. Henley formed all the cards into one stack and held it in front of the glass casing in the tree.  
Nothing happened at first and the Four Horsemen were about to accept defeat, when suddenly the lights of the carousel a little behind them switched on and the music started playing softly.

The four of them exchanged meaningful looks, for even from a distance they could see a person standing in front of the carousel. Eager to finally find out who their anonymous employer was, they hurried over there.

"What?! No! You?!" Jack's astonishment was clear as he realized who was standing there.  
"Yup, it's me" Dylan said modestly.  
"I was _not_ expecting this" Merritt said.  
"Wow" was all Henley was able to produce. Danny did not actually say anything, but the look on his face was one of utter astonishment.  
"I gotta say: good job" Merritt said, "this whole thing was a masterpiece. It has never felt so good to piss people off, but are you ever going to tell us why these people?" Dylan gave them all a mischievous grin.  
"Naturally" he said, "you all deserve to know the truth". Instead of beginning speaking, Dylan looked thoughtfully up at the sky. "Let's get inside" he said, "it will rain soon".

The five of them walked into the carousel building and, sure enough, the first drops of rain already began to fall.  
Henley, Danny, Merritt and Jack sat down on the benches surrounding the carrousel, while Dylan remained standing. He looked like a tutor addressing his apprentices.

Once they were all seated, Dylan started talking and the story just poured out of him.  
He told the Horsemen of Lionel Shrike being his father, how Thaddeus had revealed nearly all of Shrike's tricks is his tv-show and how that resulted in Shrike performing the illusion that ultimately claimed his life. He told of the idea starting to brew in his mind and finally setting it in motion. He clarified why Crédit Républicain, why Arthur Tressler, why Elkhorn and why Thaddeus.

When Dylan had finished, it was only Jack who remained with a questioning look on his face.  
"Wait a minute" he said, "what about Sarah? She helped you right?"  
"I forgot you already met her" Dylan answered, "in fact, Henley, you are the only one who hasn't met her yet". Henley looked at the other three in disbelief, but Merritt reacted to this news as if he were jabbed with a knife.  
"What? Wait, my Sarah?" he stammered, "where is she?!" Merritt half rose to his feet and looked around in search for his daughter. Dylan laughed out loud at the reaction.  
"She's not here right now" he answered, "she is running some final errands, but we will meet her soon".  
"Sarah, as in… the one that did my stitches?" Danny looked equally stunned, "she has been working with you all this time?"  
"Yeah" Dylan answered, "we had to improvise a little when Merritt called her for your injury, but she handled it well".  
"So it _was_ her I saw outside our apartment here in New York yesterday?" Merritt still could not believe it, "but, how…what….since when….?" The utter astonishment made it difficult for him to finish a sentence.

"I met Sarah for the first time in Las Vegas a couple of years ago" Dylan started to explain again, "she and her fiancee were on holiday there. They had been witness to a robbery and I would be taking their statements. They were a lovely couple. Two of those people that just belonged together, should grow old together..." Dylan fell silent for a few seconds before he continued.  
"I met her again a few years later. After hurricane Katrina, every available doctor, law enforcement officer and rescue worker that could be spared was sent there. I was among them and she, living in New Orleans, was part of the rescue mission as well. They had already confirmed that her fiancee, Mike, was killed. He had drowned when their house flooded. She did the rescue work to somehow deal with the trauma of his loss, and I felt so sorry for her…." Dylan fell silent once again. Merritt buried his face in his hands, clearly remembering the pain this loss had caused his daughter.  
"We became friends, working together during the rescue mission and we stayed in contact afterwards" Dylan said, "but her misery wasn't over yet. The insurance company would not pay for her damages, catching her on some tiny technicality. She lost everything in that flood and would not see a dime for it. Nothing..."  
"Let me guess, Tressler Insurance?" Jack said darkly.  
"Yeah" Dylan answered, "I realized we were actually quite similar and decided to tell her of my history and my plan. She, too, felt that it needed to be done and we started setting it in motion. Well, the rest you know..."

There was silence among Dylan and the Four Horsemen for a little while.  
"When did you realize she was my daughter?" Merritt asked.  
"Quite soon" Dylan answered, "she never made a secret of it. But let me assure you that you were chosen for your skills and not your family ties".

At that moment Dylan's phone rang. "Hello?" he said into the device, "perfect, we'll be there in a few minutes". He disconnected the line and looked at every Horsemen individually. "Time to go".

They all rose to their feet. Only seconds later, Henley felt Danny heavily bump into her.  
"What…?" she began. She turned around at him and immediately knew something was very wrong.  
Danny was whiter than ever and clearly trembling all over now. He swayed dangerously on his feet and before Henley could do anything, Danny's eyes rolled back and he sank to the ground where he lay motionless….

* * *

 **Thank you all for reading again. All reviews, favs and follows are still higthly appreciated.  
**


	8. Chapter 8

For an excruciatingly long second, no one said anything or moved a muscle.  
Henley was the first to recover from the initial shock. She fell to her knees next to Danny, sobbing softly.

Danny lay on his side on the floor. His breathing sounded heavy and ragged. Henley placed her hands gently on his shoulder and shook him lightly.  
"Danny?" she whispered, "Danny? Come on, wake up..." Henley pleaded for him to give some sign of life, but Danny did not react in any way.  
"Come on, Danny-boy" Merritt now joined Henley and he too knelt down on the ground. Merritt grabbed Danny's shoulder and slowly rolled him onto his back. The young magician felt completely limp, with no power in his muscles whatsoever.

Henley looked at Danny as he lay before her. She took in every details about him. His hair, which was a little more ruffled than usual, his closed eyes, the rise and fall of his chest, his hands with their long, slim fingers, the way his suit jacket was buttoned closed….  
"Wait..." Henley suddenly said, "he never buttons his jackets closed all the way. He hates it". Merritt gave her a little frightened look, for he could already foresee where this was going.  
"Oh, no..." he sighed heavily. Henley gently unbuttoned Danny's jacket and pulled it aside. She sobbed softly when the white shirt beneath it was revealed.  
"Shit" Merritt mumbled as he too saw it.

A large bloodstain was visible on Danny's shirt. The wound had clearly started bleeding again and, judging from the size of the stain, it was doing so quite freely.  
"He probably tore the stitches" Dylan said, "I'll get Sarah on the phone". He moved away from them and immediately started dialing.

Jack was a little to the side from the rest of the Horsemen and the only one not joining in the fuss around Danny. He looked like he was about to either throw up or faint.  
Usually he had an answer for everything, but not now. His mind had formed an image of what it must have looked like when Danny got shot, but now that he saw the true effects of the injury on his friend and fellow Horsemen, it looked very different. Much more intense and much more terrifying. Jack was scared and he did not even try to hide it anymore.

Meanwhile, Henley had sat down on the ground. She had pulled Danny's head into her lap and was absentmindedly stroking his hear. A silent tear rolled across her cheeks from time to time.  
The bloodstain on Danny's shirt was still growing and he had not regained consciousness yet. His breathing sounded a little less labored, but still far from normal.

Merritt had been keeping a watchful eye on Jack, for the young man was quite pale.  
"You okay?" he asked softly. Jack slowly shook his head in reply.  
"Not really" he finally said, "this whole situation is a bit… confronting". Merritt clapped Jack on the shoulder.  
"Come on, bro" he said, "sit down. We don't need you going down too". Merritt steered Jack back to one of the benches and they both sat down. Jack immediately buried his face in his hands and sighed miserably.  
"What are we going to do now?" he asked and for the first time he sounded as scared as he looked.  
"We'll have to see what Sarah has to say" Merritt answered, "she's a good doctor, I'm certain she'll be able to figure something out".

At that moment Dylan reached Sarah on the phone.  
"Hey, it's me" he said into the device, "look, we've got a problem. Danny's collapsed". Dylan was quiet after that and listened to Sarah talk on the other side of the line.  
"Okay, wait" Dylan said after a little while, "Henley's with him. I'm putting you on speaker phone, so you can tell her what you need her to do". He walked over to Henley and knelt down next to her, phone in his hand.  
"We're ready, Sarah" he said.  
"Henley?" Sarah's voice sounded from the phone, "I know we haven't met yet, my name is Sarah. There are a few things I need to know to be able to determine what state Danny is in. Can you help me with that?"  
"Alright" Henley's voice was weak, yet determined.

"Feel his pulse and count out loud with the rhythm of his heartbeat" Sarah instructed. Henley reached forward and took Danny's hand in hers and pressed her fingers against his limp wrist. She didn't start counting right away, but just felt the reassuring feeling of Danny's pulse against her fingers for a few seconds.  
"One, two, three, four..." she finally started counting in a steady rhythm. Sarah allowed her to get to about 48, before stopping her.  
"Thank you" Sarah's voice sounded over the phone, "his heart-rate is a little elevated, but steady". Henley stopped feeling Danny's pulse, but kept his hand in hers.  
"What can you tell me about his breathing?" Sarah continued.  
"Uhm… regular" Henley said, "but it sounds a bit… like it hurts him to breath. A bit heavy". Sarah did not respond to that answer, but merely asked the next question. "How's the gunshot wound?"  
"It's bleeding again" Henley answered, "quite a bit".  
"We haven't had a look at the actual wound" Dylan cut in, "but I suspect he tore his stitches. Judging from the stain on his shirt, the wound indeed bled quite a bit".  
"Is it still bleeding?" Sarah asked.  
"Yeah, looks like it" Dylan answered.

There was silence on both ends of the line for a full minute.  
"So, what's your verdict?" Dylan finally asked. They all heard Sarah sigh over the phone.  
"His physical condition doesn't sound too bad, but I can only tell for sure when I can actually examine him" she said seriously, "I'm not happy that he tore his stitches, I'll have to re-do those. My guess is that he is just extremely fatigued, over-exerted himself. In such a situation the body protects itself from any more damage, thus the collapse".  
"What can we do?" Merritt joined the conversation.  
"I know it's not going to be easy, but I need you to get him over here. I need to re-attend to the wound and he needs to rest". Dylan passed a hand over his face, not looking forward to the task ahead.  
"Alright, we'll be there as soon as possible" he finally said.

The line disconnected and Dylan exchanged looks with both Merritt and Jack.  
"How are we going to move him without attracting too much attention?" Merritt asked no one in particular.  
"Well, you could ask me to walk" Danny's voice sounded weary and slurred. None of the Horsemen had noticed that he had slowly started to regain consciousness.

Henley gave a cry in relief. "Danny!"  
Danny's eyes fluttered open and close a few times, before he managed to keep them open and focus his gaze on Henley's face.  
"Hi..." he breathed out, "I… appear to have blacked out". He sounded extremely tired and blinked sluggishly. One of his hands had formed a tight fist around the bottom of his jacket, indicating he was experiencing quite some pain.  
"You're an idiot, you know that?" Henley whispered with a little smile.  
"Always have been" Danny answered weakly. Henley did not say anything to that, but simply bent forward and placed a kiss on his forehead.

Dylan rose to his feet, and Jack and Merritt followed his example.  
"Where exactly is Sarah?" Jack asked, "where do we need to go?"  
"We have an apartment, it's about 15 minutes walk from here" Dylan answered, "it's our hideout for the next few weeks".  
"I guess we'll just have to do this" Jack muttered.  
"Okay, Danny-boy, rise and shine" Merritt said, walking over to him, "I am sure you cannot walk independently, so Jack and myself will be so kind to assist you".  
"Appreciate that" Danny answered.

Henley gently helped Danny sit upright and eventually stand up. Merritt and Jack each swung one of Danny's arms around their necks to support him.  
"Are your going to be alright?" Henley asked.  
"I don't know" Danny answered honestly, "but I have to do this. It's the last thing today that I actually _have_ to do". 

* * *

It was only after they reached the apartment that Dylan realized how lucky they had been not to have run into anyone. They could always have used the excuse that Danny had one to many drinks and that they were bringing him home, but it still could have led to awkward questions or even recognitions from passers-by.

Once they were in the elevator of the apartment building, Dylan finally dared to breath again. Merritt and Jack were still supporting Danny and both of them felt him lean on them more and more by the second.  
Danny suddenly groaned softly, his legs gave out on him and he passed out again. Luckily, Jack and Merritt were holding onto him tightly, so he didn't fall to the floor again.

The elevator gave a soft 'ping' to indicate that they had reached the wanted floor. Jack and Merritt dragged the unconscious Danny through the hallway and into their apartment and laid him down on a bed in one of the bedrooms.  
Sarah and Henley were the only ones that remained there, while the others retreated to the living room.

Sarah quickly attended to Danny's wound, with Henley nervously watching her.  
She removed the remains of the torn stitches, cleaned the wound and stitched it up again. Danny did not move a muscle during the procedure. He was deeply unconscious.

Once she was done, Sarah sat back in her chair and looked over at Henley.  
"If he's lucky, he'll be up and around tomorrow again. Calmly of course" she said, seeing the question burn in Henley's eyes.  
"Thank you" Henley answered. Sarah gave her a little smile, before standing up and leaving her alone with Danny. 

* * *

The moment Sarah set foot in the living room, she was face to face with Merritt.  
"Dad..." she began, but Merritt merely raised a hand to stop her.  
"I know I haven't been the best of dads" he started, softly taking her hands in his, "I haven't been around much lately and I'm sorry for that…"  
"Don't" Sarah interrupted him, "it's alright, you don't have to apologize. It's not like I haven't been keeping secrets".  
"I just want to say" Merritt continued, "that I love you". He pulled Sarah into a tight embrace. He did not expect it to happen, but a single tear rolled down his face, for this was his daughter and he could not even begin to describe how proud he was of her. 

* * *

**Thanks for reading once again. All reviews, favs and follows are still highly appreciated ;-)  
** **This also was the penultimate chapter. The next one will be last one and will be up a.s.a.p.  
**


	9. Chapter 9

**So, unfortunately, this is the last chapter. Thank you to everyone who has followed, favorited and reviewed this story. Everything was, and is still, highly appreciated :-) And have fun with this last chapter!**

* * *

You never wake up the moment you open your eyes. Subconsciously you are already registering things long before you realize you're awake.

Danny realized he was waking up when the pain to his abdomen returned, along with a pounding headache. He deliberately did not open his eyes, not wanting to anger his already aching head any further. With his other senses, he tried to determine where he was.  
He could feel soft blankets under his hands and his head was resting on an equally soft pillow. The sounds of traffic could be heard faintly from outside and a smell entered his nose as if someone was cooking pasta.

Suddenly, close to his left ear, Danny heard the sound of a page being turned. Now he was getting curious. Who was there with him?  
He slowly rolled his head to the side and opened his eyes a crack. Sarah was sitting in an armchair next to his bed. A book, that easily contained a thousand pages, lay open in her lap. She still wore her engagement ring, Danny now noticed.

"Where am I?" Danny asked softly. His voice was hoarse from the lack of use.  
"Dylan's apartment, across the street from Central Park. Everyone's here" Sarah answered. She suddenly clapped the book shut and looked Danny straight in the eyes.  
"Tell me" she started sternly, "which part of me telling you to be careful with that wound didn't you understand?" Danny fully opened his eyes now to stare back at her, but her expression was unreadable.  
"I'm... sorry?" he mumbled hesitantly and was surprised to see Sarah's face break into a smile.  
"Well, it's not like I didn't expect it" she said.  
"How bad is it?" Danny asked, serious now.  
"You tore up most of the stitches" Sarah answered, "but you mostly overexerted yourself. You did more than your body could take at that moment and therefore you passed out". Sarah checked her watch. "You've been out for a good 16 hours now".  
"Great" Danny groaned, passing a hand over his face.  
"I re-did the stitches" Sarah continued, "and if you do take your rest this time, you'll be fine".

Sarah handed Danny some painkillers and a glass of water, which he gratefully took. The pain from his wound he could handle, but the headache was killing him. He gradually sat upright in the bed.  
"Where's Henley?" He asked.  
"She sat right here next to your bed all night, until she herself could barely stay awake. I took over after that, as you can see" Sarah answered. Danny did not respond. Had he really been that blind? No matter how many fights they had had in the past, Henley still cared about him, even loved him probably. And suddenly he realized he felt exactly the same way about her.

Sarah stood up from her chair. "You hungry?" she asked, "we're having diner in a few minutes. Dylan makes a mean spaghetti bolognaise".  
"Starving" Danny only now realized how hungry he was. He swung his legs over the edge of the bed and made to carefully stand up.  
"Oh, wait!" he suddenly said, eyes sparkling mischievously, "I am allowed to move around the apartment, right? Or doesn't that qualify as taking it easy?" Sarah chuckled audibly at his remark.  
"No, that's fine" she answered.

Sarah turned around and made for the door, intending to give Danny some privacy when he changed his clothes.  
"Dylan told us your story" Danny suddenly said, stopping her dead in her tracks. Sarah slowly turned around to look at him.  
"He did, didn't he?" She sighed. A hint of misery sounded through in her voice.  
"You don't look so pleased about that" Danny interpreted her expression.  
"Oh, he can tell you if he wants" Sarah shrugged, "after all, it is part of why he finally executed his plan and asked me to assist him. It's just that I don't like people thinking that I need sympathy just because of what life threw at me". Danny stared at her speechlessly for a few seconds.  
"Well..." Danny started when he found his voice again, "I do feel sorry for you. I never lost someone that close to me, so I can't imagine what it must feel like".  
"Excruciating" Sarah spoke softly, "it is utterly excruciating". Danny smiled weakly at her.  
"Whether you like it or not, that gives you my sympathy" he said, "that, and the bullet wound you stitched up for me. Twice".  
"Don't worry about it" Sarah waved away his gratitude, "now, get dressed or you'll miss the spaghetti". With that she turned around and left Danny alone in the bedroom.

* * *

As soon as Danny emerged from the bedroom and stepped into the modernly furnished living room, Henley almost ran to him and flung her arms around his neck.  
"Don't you ever scare me like that again!" she said, releasing the embrace and giving him a hard look. She tried to sound angry, but failed miserably at it.  
"I won't" Danny answered with a smile, seeing that Henley could not stay mad at him for long.

Dylan walked into the living room and placed a steaming pot of spaghetti on the dinner table.  
"Hey! Look who's on his feet again" he called over as he saw Danny, "and you're right on time for dinner".

* * *

The six of them sat down at the dinner table.  
Danny had not realized until now how hungry he actually was. His stomach was rumbling for him to ingest some food. And Sarah had been right, the spaghetti Dylan had made was one of the best he had ever had.

Dylan looked around at everyone eating. They surely looked like a completely mismatched family!  
Jack and Sarah shared a joke about planting the money in Thaddeus' car, Merritt and Henley were speaking about their most recent show and Danny was rapidly finishing his first plate.  
Dylan observed them all in silence. It had been he who had brought them all together, but now actually seeing it done, was a fantastic feeling.

"So, what happens next?" Jack suddenly asked.  
"The four of you should definitely lay low for a while" Dylan answered, "the FBI believes that they caught the fifth Horsemen with Thaddeus. They believe he is the real mastermind behind it all and that you four have been merely doing his bidding. That doesn't mean you'll go free, surely not. I am certain they will keep looking for you. And if the FBI doesn't, then Thaddeus most likely will".  
"And you helped the FBI in believing Thaddeus is the fifth Horsemen?" Danny said, a mischievous glint in his eyes.  
"Naturally" Dylan answered with a big smile.

"And what about us?" Henley asked, "if we don't get caught, I mean?"  
"Well, that all depends on yourselves" Dylan answered, "there is much more wrong and injustice in this world that needs to be righted. I am sure The Eye will have further assignments for you".  
Danny, Henley, Merritt and Jack exchanged questioning looks. Jack was the first to speak again.  
"I'm in" he said. Merritt nodded in agreement. "I feel the Horsemen have more work to do".  
"Absolutely" Henley agreed. Everyone looked expectantly at Danny.  
"Once I'm in one piece again, I'm definitely in" he answered.  
"Wonderful!" Dylan exclaimed. His gaze focused on Sarah now. "And you?"  
"Of course" she answered, "like I would say no to that!"  
"Oh yeah!" Jack smiled and held up his hand up for a high-five, which she did with a big smile.

"So, I guess it's on to the next mission then" Dylan said cheerily. He raised his glass for a toast.  
"To the Horsemen" he said. The others followed his example and raised their glasses as well, speaking in unison for the toast. "To the Horsemen!"


End file.
